These three monsters were the third brood to be born to Gaia. They were giants who hand one hundred arms springing out of their back and shoulders, and fifty heads. Their names were Cottus, Briareus and Gyges. When Zeus had conquered Mount Olympus, he allowed them to live there with the rest of the gods.
The twelve Titans were the first race of beings to inhabit the earth, children of Uranus and Gaia. There were six males and six females. Among the males were Oceanus, Coeus, Hyperion, Crius, Iapetus and Cronus. The six females were Theia, Rhea, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, Tethys, and Themis. When Cronus had overthrown his father, Rhea began to bear his children. He had received the prophecy from his father that he would one day be overthrown by one of his own children. To prevent this, he swallowed his children at birth, but Rhea saved Zeus from his father, which led to Cronus’ downfall.
Hebe was the goddess of youth, daughter of Zeus and Hera. She was an attendant of the gods whenever they would gather on mount Olympus in festivals or celebrations. She later became the wife of Hercules upon his death as a mortal when he was brought up to Mount Olympus and made into the god of strength by Zeus.
Eris was the goddess of discord, another daughter of Zeus and Hera. She was the twin sister of Ares, born from hatred and anger. She would always accompany him into battle, standing beside him in his chariot throwing her golden apple into throngs of people, causing strife even between the best of friends.
Iris was a messenger goddess to the gods on Olympus, but mostly devoted to Hera. She was the daughter of Thaumas and Electra. The Harpies of the Underworld were her sisters, but she was opposite of what they were in every way. She would appear as a beautiful woman with a pair of multi-hued feathery wings on her back. She was the Keeper of the Rainbow, and would use it to travel to the earth to carry out the will of the gods. She wore a dress of dewdrops, which would reflect the light, and the colours of the rainbow would cascade down her body as she moved.
The Horae or The Seasons were born from Gaia. They were the keepers of the gates of the heavens, and it was only through them that any god or mortal could enter. There were three of them, and they were called Thallo (Spring), Auxo (Summer), and Carpo (Autumn).
The Morae, or The Fates, were spinners of life and death. It was through their will that mortals were born, and then would eventually die. Clotho would spin the threads of life, one thread for every mortal or god that existed. Lachesis would measure the thread as it was spun, the longer the thread was, the longer the being lived. Atropos, Lady of the Silver Shears would cut the thread, and as she did, the being that the thread belonged to would die. The Fates were born from Chaos in the beginning of time, and are among the oldest deities that existed. Every god and mortal feared them, not for what they were capable of, but what they would eventually do.
Daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (Titaness of Memory), these nine goddesses would govern over various aspects of art and literature. They would go down to earth and teach the mortals about their particular office, leading them into the Iron Age of man. The Muses and their sphere of influences are as follows:
Cleo: Muse of History
Euterpe: Muse of Flute playing
Thalia: Muse of Comedy
Melpomene: Muse of Tragedy
Terpsichore: Muse of Dance
Erato: Muse of Love Poetry
Polyhymnia: Muse of Hymns
Urania: Muse of Astronomy
Calliope: Muse of Epic Poetry
They were constant companions of Apollo, and the ten of them would travel all over the world, and hold entire audiences in thrall as they sang, danced, and created the most beautiful music that any mortal has ever heard.
The Hours were often said to be the keepers of the gates of heaven, thus being confused with the three Horae. The three Hours are Eunomia (Harmony), Dyke (Justice), and Eirene (Peace)
The three Graces were the goddesses of grace and beauty. They were the daughters of Zeus and the ancient sea goddess Eurynome. They were Aglaia (Splendor), Euprhosene (Mirth), and Thalia (Good Cheer). They were waiting on the isle of Cytheria to greet Aphrodite at her birth, and guided her to Olympus. When Aphrodite was accepted into the pantheon, the three Graces became her handmaidens.
Or The Furies were the goddesses of punishment. They would travel through the world in the form of old hags from the waist up, and vultures from the waist down, entering the dreams of mortals and driving them insane for any sins that they may have committed. They sprang from the blood of the dying Uranus as it fell upon the earth. Their names were Tisiphone, Alecto, and Mageara. The lived in the Underworld with Hades, and would watch over mankind from there only to venture to the surface world when punishments were to be dealt.
Selene was the goddess of the moon, daughter of the Titan Hyperion and his sister Eryphaesa. She was the female aspect of the sun, mounting her chariot drawn by milk white horses at night, and shedding her soft light over the world as it slept. On one of her venture across the night sky she spied a lone shepherd asleep in his field. She fell in love with him, and wanted him to love her. She drifted down from her chariot, and lay beside him as he slept, admiring his beauty. However he was mortal, and she was not. She would live forever, and he would grow old and die. To prevent this, she cast him under an eternal sleep, so that he would never grow older, remaining young and beautiful for the rest of eternity. From him Selene gave birth to 50 daughters, each with possessing the beauty of the moon from their mother, and the sleepiness of their father.
Eos was the daughter of Hyperion and Eryphaesa, and sister to Selene and Helios. She was the goddess of the dawn, and dwelt with Apollo in the palace of the sun on the eastern most point of the world. At the beginning of every day, she would dip her fingers into a goblet of dew by her bedside, and sprinkle it all over the world, heralding the arrival of the sun. She was the mother of the four winds, named Boreas (North wind), Notus (South wind), Zephrys (West wind) and Eulus (East wind). She also gave birth to the planets in the solar system, and placed them in their orbits. Like her sister, she too fell in love with a mortal; a young prince named Tithanos. She invited Tithanos to live with her in the sun palace, which he did. Eos had the fear of him growing old and dying, so she went to Zeus and asked him to give the gift of eternal life to Tithanos, so they could be together forever. This was done, and they spent many years blissfully happy. However, the gift of eternal life did not come with eternal youth. Tithanos began to age, growing older and older. There was nothing that Eos could do, so she turned him into a grasshopper and kept him hidden away in one of the many rooms in the sun palace. All grasshoppers stop singing, and seek shelter at the arrival of the dawn every morning, in remembrance of what happened to Tithanos.
Hypnos was the god of sleep, and son of Nyx (Night). He would travel all over the world, having mortals drink from his cup which would place them in a deep slumber, only to be dispelled when his mother fled from the sky. He also had a wand that was given to him by his mother. Whenever he touched any being with it, they would fall asleep, just as if they have drank from his cup. Hera would constantly consult him, and ask him time and time again to put Zeus to sleep so that she could meddle in the lives of his lovers. The one time that he did do this was when Hera was trying to kill Hercules, Zeus’ favourite son. When Zeus found out what had happened to him, he immediately went out in search of Hypnos, eventually finding him in the arms of his mother. He threatened Hypnos never to meddle in his affairs ever again, for there would be a punishment the next time. Hypnos agreed to this, but went against his promise one more time for Hera during the Battle of Troy, when he put Zeus asleep so that Hera could put his warriors in the war at a disadvantage. Zeus never found out that Hypnos had gone against him again, which is what Hera had promised.
Morpheus was born from the great void of Chaos at the beginning of time. Often called the Dream-tinker, Morpheus was the god of dreams. He could enter any sleeping mind at will and cause soft, beautiful dreams, or violent, raging nightmares. He was in league with the Erinyes, who would attack their victims through their dreams.
She was the first daughter to be born to Zeus and Hera after their marriage. She became a goddess of childbirth, travelling the earth helping mortal women bring their children into the world.
The Graea were three hags that lived in the farthest reaches of the north. They were the daughters of Ceto and Phorcys, and the granddaughters of Chaos. They were the only beings, other than Hera, that knew how to find the Garden of Hesperides. Perseus went to consult them on his voyage to slay the gorgon Medusa. Between the three of them they share one eye and one tooth. In order for them to tell him where the Garden was Perseus had to steal their eye and use it as a bribe for the information that he needed.
Circe wasn’t a true immortal. She was the daughter of Helios, and the mortal Perseis. Throughout the years, she began to learn the secrets of sorcery, which she used to bestow immortality upon herself. She created an island for herself so that she could live far away from any other mortals, which she considered beneath her. This island was called Aiaia, and the sorceress would turn any mortal that came upon her island into animals. Odysseus was the only man to have ever resisted her magic, and this was only done through the help of Hermes. He gave Odysseus an herb called molly, the scent rendered him immune to Circe’s power, and he was able to make her break the spells that she had cast on Odysseus’ shipmates, who had all been turned into pigs.
The Sirens had once been beautiful nymphs in the service of Demeter. When Persephone had gone missing, Demeter gave the pair of nymphs wings so that they may search the land for her missing daughter. During this transformation, they were also given the talons of an eagle. Being unable to find Persephone eventually drove the sisters insane, and they chose to remain on a small island on the coast of Sicily. Here they sang day and night, their song was death itself. Their song would carry through the ocean, dancing on the waves and onto the ears of any sailors passing by. Their voices were so alluring that the men would throw themselves into the ocean and swim to the island where the Sirens would devour them. Odysseus was the only man to have ever heard the Sirens and live to tell the tale. As he and his ship full of men sailed past the islands, he had everyone on his ship plug their ears with beeswax, but he left his ears unplugged. Right as the faintest whispers of the Sirens’ song touched his ears, he was driven mad with the desire to reach the source of those voices. It took ten of his strongest men to restrain him, and tie him to the mast with the anchor line. The voices seemed to pull the flesh from his bones, and tug on the hair in his scalp. No matter how he pleaded with his men to release him, they continued to row, until they were out of the danger of the monsters. Their names were Teles and Legia, and they remained on their island, stranded with their insatiable thirst for human blood.
Eros was the god of love, but it was never clear on who his parents were. Some may say that he was born from Aphrodite. Others may say that he had to be born from Chaos in the beginning of time in order for love to exist between beings, and creation to begin. He flew through the land with his quiver of arrows. There were two types of arrows: arrows tipped with gold, and arrows tipped with lead. The golden arrows were for love; any being scratched by one of these arrows would fall in love with the first being that they set their eyes on. The leaden arrows were for bitter indifference. Love was the primary force in the universe, bringing together two beings through emotion, and allowing them to conceive children. Eros fell victim to one of his arrows, and fell in love with the mortal Psyche. This love eventually blossomed into Psyche being granted immortality, and the two of them getting married.
Harmonia was the daughter of Ares and Aphrodite. She was a goddess of neutrality and harmony; two opposites being able to exist together indefinitely. Aphrodite had a necklace made by Hepheastus, which she gave to Harmonia. It had the power to balance out good and evil, chaos and order, into total neutrality. It also gave the wearer eternal beauty. Whoever wore it would never grow old. With this necklace, she would travel the world and walk amongst men fighting wars, or people arguing. Immediately, the arguing or fighting stops, and the people return home.
Helios was the son of Hyperion and Eryphaesa, brother to Selene and Eos. He was said to have taken over the duties of Apollo, driving the sun chariot across the sky every day. He had one daughter (Circe) with a mortal woman.
Pan was the son of Hermes, and a meadow nymph named Dryope. When Pan was born, Dryope ran away in terror when she set eyes upon her baby. He had small horns growing out of his forehead, and from the waist down were goat’s legs. Hermes took the abandoned Pan up to Olympus for the gods’ amusement. He later became a god of nature, residing in the forests of Arcadia. His name is derived from ‘Panic’. When mortals ventured too near his home in the forest, he would let out a blood-chilling shriek, frightening off any being that heard it. The gods themselves were not immune to this, and it was said that it was Pan’s scream that caused the retreat of the Titans during the battle between the Olympians.
